The present invention relates to automotive vehicle racks and, more particularly, to a holder for securing an elongated object to an automotive vehicle rack.
It is desirable to be able to carry masts for sailboards or boats on a roof rack of a vehicle. It is important, though, that the rack holding arrangement not result in damage to the surface of the mast. Moreover, although most, if not all, masts are quite tensile and compressively strong axially thereof, some cannot withstand significant compressive load laterally of the axis, particularly if the load is concentrated.
The rack holders now commercially available for masts typically are designed also to hold various other kinds of items, each of which has its own shape. The shape of the cradle of such holders therefore is also generally universal, and most a holder do not prevent masts or other elongated loads from slightly shifting or vibrating during transportation. Moreover, holders typically are designed to be tough to protect a load from external shocks and forces. Most also rely on the structural integrity of the cradle to provide securance to a rack cross bar. These factors have restricted the material which can be used for a cradle to only ones the designer believes have the structural integrity needed both to absorb the shocks typically associated with transportation and to provide reliable securance to a rack.